Congee, a quintessential comfort food with many regional variations across China, is an ideal dish if you’re feeling under the weather or want to prepare a one-pot meal with leftovers that will never disappoint. Cooked on a stovetop in water or broth until the rice breaks down and turns the liquid into a thick, creamy porridge, congee can take hours to prepare. So Betty Liu came up with a clever trick for this congee recipe: Rinse the rice and freeze it overnight. The frozen rice breaks down quickly, cutting your cooking time in half. Since the heart of the dish is therice, take care in choosing your grains. If you don't have jasmine, reach for a short- or medium-grain white rice (like sushi rice), knowing you may have to adjust the cooking time and the amount of water.
You can replace that water with stock for another layer of flavor and experiment with the toppings; congee is infinitely adaptable. But keep in mind, it’s not meant to be overwhelmingly flavorful but rather delicate, nourishing, and easy to digest, so be gentle but creative with your variations. In the spring, dress a bowl up withgreen garlic oiland in the fall,Turkey Congee With Crispy Shiitake Mushroomsis a great way to use up the leftover turkey from your Thanksgiving meal.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published on January 19, 2020.
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What you’ll need
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Measuring Cups
$18 At Bon Appétit Market
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Measuring Spoons
$10 At Bon Appétit Market
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Sieve
$18 At Amazon
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Plastic Bag
$11.70 At Amazon
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Spoon
$24.69 At Amazon
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Medium Bowl
$17 At Amazon
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Chef's Knife
$34.53 At Amazon
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Cutting Board
$10 At IKEA
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Large Saucepan
$60 At Amazon
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Wooden Spoon
$7 At Amazon
Ingredients
4 servings
Step 1
Place1 cup jasmine ricein a fine-mesh strainer and rinse in several changes of water until water runs clear. Drain. Transfer rice to a freezer-safe container and freeze overnight. If you use a plastic bag, don't toss it when you're done: Just rinse it out, let it dry, and save it for the future. (This step helps the rice break down faster when you’re cooking it, which dramatically reduces its cooking time. If you don’t have time to freeze your rice, that’s okay; you’ll just cook it longer in step 8.)
Step 2
Prepare your ingredients: Mix4 oz. ground pork,1 Tbsp. finely grated peeled ginger, and1 Tbsp. soy saucein a medium bowl and let sit 10 minutes. Trim woody ends of4 oz. shiitake mushrooms, then cut into thin slices. Trim root ends off4 scallionsand thinly slice crosswise.
Step 3
Heat2 Tbsp. vegetable oilin a large saucepan over medium-high. Add sliced mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and crisp, 6–8 minutes.
Step 4
Reduce heat to medium-low, add half of sliced scallions (reserve remaining scallions for serving), and cook, stirring, until scallions are aromatic and fragrant but not browned, 1-2 minutes. Transfer mushrooms and scallions to a plate.
Step 5
Heat remaining1 Tbsp. vegetable oilin same saucepan over medium. Add marinated pork and cook, stirring once, just until it turns from pink and translucent to lightly browned and opaque, about 1 minute. Transfer pork to plate with mushrooms and scallions. It won’t be fully cooked through but that's okay—you'll return it to the congee later on.
Step 6
Add7 cups waterto saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add frozen rice (or unfrozen rice, if using) and return to a boil, stirring to prevent sticking. Scrape up any brown bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan—there's great porky flavor there! Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thick, porridge-like, and rice has broken apart, about 20 minutes for frozen rice, and 1½ hours for unfrozen rice. If you are using a short- or medium-grain white rice (as opposed to jasmine), this time might vary.
Step 7
Stir in pork, mushrooms, and scallions and let simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors have melded, another 5 minutes. Check the texture: If you want a thinner congee, add more water. If you want a thicker, more oatmeal-like texture, continue to cook, stirring frequently, until it reaches the desired consistency. Season soup withkosher saltandwhite or black pepper.
Step 8
Divide congee among bowls. Top with reserved scallions and chili oil, if using.
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